Controllable semiconductor components like MOSFETs (Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistors), IGBTs (Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistors) etc. are widely used as electronic switches for switching electrical loads or as electronic switches in all types of switching converters. In such components, a load path between a first main electrode (e.g., a source or emitter) and a second main electrode (e.g., a drain or collector) can be switched “ON” (i.e., the conductive state) or “OFF” (i.e., the blocking state) using an appropriate control signal applied to a control input (gate). In the conductive state, the load path has a low on-state resistance. As a general rule, each new generation of controllable semiconductor components are desired to have a lower area specific on-resistance than the previous generation without deterioration of the switching characteristics. A measure for the overall performance of the component is the FOMG (Figure of Merit (Gate)), i.e., the product of the on-state resistance RON and the gate charge QG. An additional important parameter is the FOMoss (Figure of Merit (output)), i.e. the product of the on-state resistance RON and the output charge Qoss. Lower FOMG and FOMoss, increase the overall performance of the component. A further important development target is high avalanche strength, which is required, for instance, when switching inductive loads.
One target of the development in the past years was to reduce the cell pitch of the component. Thereby, the structures were scaled down with each step in development. However, that concept has been developed close to its limits. Hence, providing a further improved controllable semiconductor component requires a new concept.